Doctor gives insights on job stress

Stress is a survival response. It’s a necessary part of life, explained Dr. J. Crit Harley, who presented “Helping the Helpers” seminar Wednesday at the Henderson County Chamber of Commerce.

By Jessica GoodmanTimes-News Staff Writer

Stress is a survival response. It’s a necessary part of life, explained Dr. J. Crit Harley, who presented “Helping the Helpers” seminar Wednesday at the Henderson County Chamber of Commerce.The goal of the “psychological first-aid kit” for nonprofit workers was to provide participants with the tools to return to their organizations and share the information.“All sorts of physiological changes (come with stress),” said Harley, an ER doctor who became interested in stress management and then opened a practice to tackle the problem. “We become grouches, grumps, easily agitated, frustrated, and our job performance goes down which just adds to it.”Stress creates several physiologic changes in the body. There is a redistribution of blood, Harley explained. The body will decrease the blood distributed to the skin first, which causes clammy skin. Second is the gastrointestinal tract, which would account for “butterflies” in the stomach. Third, blood is redistributed from the brain.“When we get stressed, we get stupid,” Harley added.Stress does increase performance, he said, but only to a point. Eventually, as stress continues to increase, performance eventually plateaus. If stress continues to increase, it will start to drop off.Stress comes from anything perceived as a threat, Harley explained.“Our thoughts are geared to survival,” he said. “And that’s a good thing, but that means our thoughts are always looking for threats.”To relieve stress, Harley recommended a few stress management techniques. Employers could set a good example for their employees by managing their own stress. Listen and be compassionate to others, he advised.“It feels good to be heard, to be listened to,” he added. “People like to vent.”

Choose stress words carefully. Stress words and phrases in the English language include: Should, need, “I can’t” and the absolute words of “all, always, never and none.”“If you’re saying the word ‘should,’ you’re saying there are no options,” Harley said.The antidote is giving people choice. Instead of saying an employee “should” do something, which gives them no choice, an employer might use “could” instead.“Nobody always screws up all of the time,” Harley added. “It’s not about just noticing them (the words),” he added. “I need to say the offending statement with the other words.”Harley also suggested helping employees take control of their day because humans like and want control. Help employees problem solve and help them physically exercise, which helps reduce stress.The presentation, organized by the Neighbors Helping Neighbors Initiative, focused on helping volunteers and workers manage stress.Neighbors Helping Neighbors is a communitywide initiative for local nonprofits to better communicate about local issues.